


We Could Live Here, We Could

by ironfamjam



Series: Tumblr Prompts Collection [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Iron Dad, Light Avengers bashing but Peter's just angry, Someone give Peter a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 03:03:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17820590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ironfamjam/pseuds/ironfamjam
Summary: Prompt: "Please don't go."Peter would have traded half the universe for Tony Stark's life.





	We Could Live Here, We Could

When Peter reappears, he can feel each and every one of his cells splicing back together. Man was made of clay and he was returning from the dust. The panic he felt right before he died burns through his body, but when he looks around to find the threat, he sees nothing but white. Peter tries to slow his body down, practice what Mr. Stark taught him about breathing through the fear, focusing the mind. 

He thought he would wake up on Titan where he died, but this is just empty space. Bright empty space. He wonders if this is where he’ll be now until the end of the fighting and the beginning of the world anew when a sharp gasp catches his attention. He spins around, eyes widening as he sees Tony heaving hard, Thanos’ gauntlet glowing on his hand. 

“Mr. Stark?” Peter whispers, not daring to believe it. But though he doesn’t know if he’s real or just a figment of his imagination, he runs toward him anyway. Runs like a dying man seeing salvation. 

Tony looks into his eyes and for the first time in Peter’s life, he sees them film over with tears. The relief on his face is so strong Peter feels it in his soul and his whole heart aches. “Peter. Peter you’re okay. You’re okay.” Tony repeats, sounding more like he’s comforting himself than Peter, but Peter doesn’t care.

He throws himself into his mentor’s arms, hugging him tight against himself, trying to push all the fear away. Tony holds him just as tight, tighter even, rocking him back and forth like he was praying. “Oh thank God.” Tony mumbles against his neck, “Thank God you’re alright.” 

“I’m okay Mr. Stark.” Peter affirms, “You saved me.” He looks down at the gauntlet, “You saved all of us.” 

Tony pulls away sooner than Peter would like, but the expression on his face stops Peter dead. There’s an apology written in the curve of Tony’s lips, in the regret in his eyes, the tremble of his jaw. 

Peter’s stomach plummets. The fear comes roaring back. “Mr. Stark?” 

“Peter.” Mr. Stark breathes, and suddenly the gauntlet disappears and Tony’s hands are cupping his face, tracing over his cheekbone like he was braille and he was blind. “Peter, I’m going to save you. I’m going to send you back to May. You’re going to be safe now. There’s no more Thanos, no more dust. Everything’s going to be okay.” 

Peter’s hand shakes when he sets it atop of Tony’s. Something isn’t right. His stomach twists. “What about you? Where will you go?” 

That smile is back. The kind Peter’s seen too many times. The smile Tony gives him before he traps Peter in the tower so he doesn’t have to see a particularly gruesome fight. The smile Tony gives him before taking a hit meant for Peter instead. The smile Tony gives when he’s about to do something that’ll hurt them and break Peter’s heart. 

Peter shakes his head. 

“I can’t come with you Peter.” And his voice is so soft, why is it so soft.

Peter’s shaking intensifies. “N-no. What do you mean. Of course you’re coming back, where else would you go?” 

Tony’s looking at him like he wants Peter to understand but Peter’s trying desperately not to. Doesn’t want to think about it. Doesn’t want to say it. To say it was to acknowledge it was to make it real and Peter can’t. He can’t. He can’t. “Mr. Stark please.” 

But Tony pulls him against his chest and Peter doesn’t know he’s crying until he feels the wetness of Tony’s shirt. “This was the only way Peter. Me for the world. It’s an easy choice.” He runs his fingers through Peter’s hair like a ritual buried under layers of faith and love.

“I don’t care.” Peter cries, pushing away from him. 

He wants the world to fuck off. He wants someone else to save it. Why does it always have to be Tony? Why couldn’t it be someone else. Anyone else. He doesn’t care who. Why does it have to be the one man who he allowed back into his life in the role he thought no one could ever fill again. Why did it have to be the man he loved like a father.

It could’ve been anyone else. 

Why was it always him.

“I don’t care. You can’t- you can’t do this. I won’t let you.” But his threats are empty because he doesn’t know what to do or not do, doesn’t know anything about the gauntlet or space or time or anything at all and he hates himself. He hates himself and this situation and Mr. Stark. He hates him how dare he leave him how dare he- 

“Peter. I would give my life for yours a million times.” Tony declares and Peter trembles with the weight of them. 

Tony brushes the hair from his eyes. “I just came because I wanted to see you one last time.” 

Peter cries harder at that admission. He can’t bear with this. He can’t bear it. “I don’t want you to go. Please don’t go.” His voice cracks. “Please.” He begs, eyes glassy and miserable and pleading with any god who’d listen. 

“I’m sorry kiddo. It has to be me. No one else will do.” 

And Peter has a terrible thought but it’s out of his mouth before he can stop it, “Then don’t do it. The world’s already moved on, don’t do it. Please. Just stay with me. Please, please you can stay with us and it will be okay and we’ll find some other way to do this but for now, you can just- we can be together. You, me, and May, and Pepper and Rhodey and Happy and-and we can be happy and it will be okay.” Tony looks like his heart is breaking but Peter can’t stop because he can’t lose another father figure, he can’t, he’ll never recover this time, he knows he won’t because this time it really is his fault oh God oh God, why did he have to die, “Mr. Stark please. Please don’t leave me alone.” 

But Tony’s body is flickering in and out of focus and Peter’s breath goes ragged. “Peter. You’ll never be alone.” Tony smiles, gentler than the rain, but Peter’s grasping at him as though he could keep him together.

“Please Mr. Stark. Please, please. I’ll do anything. Please don’t go.”

“You’re going to live a long life Peter. You’ll do amazing things. You’ll become the bravest hero of us all. You make me proud every day.” Peter can barely see through his tears but he feels Tony’s lips against his forehead, so light it lasts only an instant, “You’re my greatest legacy.” Tony whispers before he vanishes and everything around them with him. 

 

 

Peter appears on a battlefield, the body of the Titan slumped on the ground. The Avengers crowd around in a circle and Peter can see their tears and shatters to his core. Running, all he can see is Tony’s body- lying down on the ground like he was sleeping, the gauntlet strewn next to him. Unable to contain himself anymore, his grief turns to rage as he turns on the Avengers, Earth’s supposed mightiest heroes. How mighty could they be? If they couldn’t save one man. 

Just one. 

“Peter,” Steve starts but Peter bares his teeth at him, daring him to lay a hand on him. 

“ _Don’t_.” Peter hisses, “Get away from me and get away from him. You don’t deserve to mourn for him. He died because of you!” 

“Peter he chose this, he wanted to, for you.” Natasha tries to say but Peter feels that stab right through his heart.

“You could have done it. Or you, or you.” He says, pointing angrily at each of them, “But no, you’d never do the sacrifice play. It’s ironic because you all love to say that Mr. Stark was the narcissist, the selfish asshole who could never do anything right but _every time_ the world needed saving he was _always_ the one on the front lines, willing to sacrifice _everything_ to save it while you all just watched! You’ve never stopped him from trying to kill himself to save everyone else and it’s YOUR FAULT!” 

Trembling now, Peter plunges to the ground, unable to stand from the weight of his mourning. He grabs Tony’s hand but he doesn’t grab back and Peter feels himself lose everything. He feels his grief overtake his hopes and his dreams and his love of the world because it was the world who took Tony from him and it was the world he decided to trade his life for and it was the world who had always turned its back on Tony that never deserved anything. But Tony never cared about that. He just wanted to be a hero. 

And the world that hated him let him, because it never cared. 

But Peter cared. 

His tears trail down Tony’s palm and over his still heartbeat. He would trade the world if it meant Tony got to live. He would trade the world.


End file.
